


dremum au: dream and his disaster children

by dyve_the_author



Category: Dream SMP - Fandom, Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: Dream Smp, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Family Dynamics, Found Family, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Other, Self-Indulgent, dream accidentally adopts tommy and tubbo, dream and his disaster children, dremum au, i know it doesn’t match up with the smp canon shhhhh, ranboo pog, tommy and tubbo are the biggest dnf shippers, tommy and tubbo need to stop trying to set dream up
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-08
Updated: 2021-02-24
Packaged: 2021-03-10 00:36:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 11,912
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27961643
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dyve_the_author/pseuds/dyve_the_author
Summary: dream didn’t think that the two children that were suddenly thrown into his life would take such a toll on him.(the misadventures of dream, tommy, and tubbo)
Relationships: Clay | Dream & Ranboo, Clay | Dream & Toby Smith | Tubbo, Clay | Dream & TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF), Clay | Dream/GeorgeNotFound (Video Blogging RPF), Toby Smith | Tubbo & TommyInnit
Comments: 76
Kudos: 675





	1. teenage dirtbags

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> parenthood is hard for anyone to grasp onto, especially if they’re two teenage kids that were thrown out from their last home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this whole chapter takes place in the past and no the l’manburg war and all that doesn’t happen. l’manburg, pogtopia, el rapids, and the badlands do exist but they’re just little parts of the smp.

dream remembers finding tommy and tubbo in the forest. he was walking home from visiting george and sapnap when he heard a twig snap. he quickly turned around, his attention on a certain bush. he knows someone’s there. he knows there’s enough space to hide there. he’s hidden there before too. he walks up to the bush. before he can get too close, two teenagers jump up from behind it. 

“stay back! i have a sword and i’m not afraid to use it!” the blonde teen shouted. dream stepped back and took note of the sword. it was an iron sword with the word “knife” engraved on the handle. he sighed put his axe back in his inventory. “look, we’re not here to hurt you so please don’t hurt us.” a brunette teenager walked out from behind him.

he was noticeably shorter than the other and a lot calmer too. the blonde looked at him with shock and anger. “tubbo what are you doing? we can’t trust him! what if he knows them?” he gestured towards him. dream tilted his head in confusion, his smiling mask not imitating his concern. tubbo sighed.

“we were thrown out of our house. tommy here got into a fight with our parents and they kicked us out. told us to never come back.” he explained. dream shuddered. he remembered what it was like to be thrown out. he remembered yelling at his dad and having his mom stay completely neutral about it. his dad got the upper hand and kicked him out. now here he is, owner of the soil that the three of them were currently standing on. 

“come on. i’ll help you guys. you shouldn’t stay in the forest long, mobs come out around this time.” he motioned for them to follow him as he led them to the community house. “wait wait wait, hold on,” tommy stopped. dream looked at him. “how do we know that we can trust you?” he continued. “i know what it’s like being kicked out of your own home. and i hid in that same bush you did too. the first night was shit but you get used to it.” he replied. that seemed to answer tommy’s question as he continued to follow him. 

the wooden structure had loaded into view as they continued towards it. tubbo stood there awestruck by the amount of buildings and lights there were. tommy was quiet, often mumbling about how sus dream seemed. the masked man ignored his comments. 

“i just have to get you two into the server list now. this’ll take a bit.” dream explained. he put the palm of his hand up to the door before it swung open. tommy and tubbo cautiously followed him inside. a screen popped up, it was a format for smp resident listing. the two teenagers stood there quietly as dream typed away, filling out what was needed.

“when we’re you born?” he asked tubbo. “uh, december 23, 2003.” the brunette stammered. dream hummed in response. he typed in tubbo’s eye color, hair color, height, and a couple other small notes. “what about you tommy?” tommy glanced at dream, “i was born april 9, 2004.” the man nodded and input tommy’s information. 

“okay, well, you two are listed in the server now. as of today, you’re permanent residents of the smp.” dream said as the screen disappeared. “where will we be staying then?” tubbo asked. “with me. i’m not letting two orphaned teens out in the smp.” dream replied as a vision of the blood god flashed in his mind. “how do we know you’re not trying to pull some shit? you’re not slick dickhead.” tommy glared at him. “i built this place from the ground up as a stowaway. i won’t do anything to you guys. consider me as an omnipotent god almost.” he replied to tommy. “well if we’re living with you, you’ll be more like our mother instead wouldn’t you? i mean, you pretty much just adopted us.” tubbo inquired. dream froze. 

parenthood wasn’t something that crossed his mind during the whole process. thinking back to it, that’s almost exactly what he did. he adopted them. he found two teenage boys that ran to the forest and he adopted them. he took them under his wing and is now responsible for their safety. “shit i guess i am.” he mumbled. 

the three of them made their way to dream’s house which was located at the top of a cliff overlooking the smp. “damn bitch you live like this?” tommy asked. dream chuckled, “what are you talking about? i think i chose a nice place to build my house.” tommy rolled his eyes. “on top of a cliff overlooking the smp? how generic is that.” “better than having it deep in the forest like it used to be.” dream shrugged. “true.” tubbo said, extending the last vowel.

“don’t encourage him tubbo!” tommy elbowed him. dream wheezed at this, catching tommy and tubbo off guard. tommy laughed first, tubbo too shortly after. dream wiped away the tears in his eyes. he looked at the two teens he adopted and smiled. maybe adopting them wasn’t such a bad idea. 

tommy and tubbo sat at the table while dream made dinner. they hadn’t eaten anything while they ran miles away from their home, and were starving. tommy swung his legs back and forth under the chair as the smell of cooked ramen filled the kitchen. 

“how’d you manage to get a whole smp without any competing forces?” tommy asked. “after i got kicked out i found that space where the community house is. no one knew this place existed so i took it upon myself to invite a few friends and we made it into what it is now.” dream answered, seasoning the broth. 

“why’d you run away in the first place?” tubbo asked. when dream didn’t answer, tommy punched him. “tubbo!” “what?” “you can’t just ask that! it might be a sensitive topic!” he hissed. “oh.” tubbo ducked his head down. “sorry uh-” he trailed on. “dream. my name is dream.” he smiled under the mask. “right, sorry dream.” “it’s alright. my family wasn’t really the best. i guess i didn’t notice it until i came out to them.” he split the ramen into three separate bowls. “came out?” “yep. they didn’t take it too well, especially my dad, so they threw me out.” “sorry to hear that.” tubbo said, anxiously tapping his fingers on the table. “it’s fine. it happened when i was your age anyways, so it’s been a pretty long time.” he brushed it off.

“can you please take your mask off? it’s kind of disturbing having to talk to our new parent when they wear a creepy ass smiling mask.” “sure. just give me a sec.” he hummed. dream set down the bowls of ramen in front of tommy and tubbo before sitting down. he unclamped the back of his mask and set it on the table.

the two teenagers finished their ramen within minutes. they rushed over to the sink and put their bowls in. tommy and tubbo argued over who would wash the dishes and what not, causing water to splatter on the kitchen counter. dream eventually took notice of this and dealt with it after he took his bowl to the sink. 

“boys please. i’ll just do the dishes, it’s your first night home anyways.” dream sighed. tommy gave a playful glare at tubbo before declaring a race to the living room. tubbo ran to the living room before tommy could count down. the two argued about it as they sat on the couch. dream laughed about it as he washed the dishes. 

when he went to sit down on the couch with them, tubbo had yawned signifying that he was ready for bed. tommy had refused to admit his tiredness until his head slowly drooped on to dream’s shoulder. once he was sure that both boys were asleep, he picked them up and moved them to separate rooms. he tucked them in and turned off all the lights in the house before he laid down on the couch and passed out. 


	2. care and creeper holes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> tommy rarely gets hurt, but when he does it always ends up being bad.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ⚠️there is blood in this chapter but it’s nothing too graphic⚠️
> 
> (back to the present)

dream sighs as he cleans up the mess in the kitchen. tommy and tubbo had woken up earlier than him, for once, and completely fucked up the kitchen while trying to cook breakfast. they did manage to make pretty good food though, he’ll give them that. speaking of which, the two teens were outside messing around with purpled in the front yard. dream smiles at this and continues to eat his breakfast while keeping an eye on them every now and then. 

a loud explosion noise can be heard followed by an “oh shit!”. dream rushes out the front door and sees tommy laying down by a creeper hole. “fuck.” he exhales, running a hand through his hair. he looks over at tubbo and purpled who are frozen in place. he can’t blame them. he rolls up his hoodie sleeves and rushes over to tommy, cradling him in his arms. he runs back inside and sits tommy down on the couch. 

“tubbo go get the medical kit. purpled try and find some rubbing alcohol and cotton balls.” dream instructs. the two boys nod and rush to fine the items dream requested them to look for. “i fucked up didn’t i dream?” tommy coughs. dream looks up at him. there’s a glint in tommy’s eyes that tells a tale of sorrow. he’s expecting dream to yell at him. to tell him how much of an idiot he is, how much he fucked up. how he’s not worthy. dream knows this look. he once felt the same way too. he shakes his head. 

“no you didn’t. it’s just a creeper explosion, it’s fine. you were pretty close to it though so you might not be able to go out for a while.” he smiles gently, giving him reassurance. tommy’s eyes well up, but he refuses to cry in front of him. dream holds his hand. “it’s okay tommy. you can cry in front of me. it doesn’t make you weak.” he comforts. “but i don’t want you to think less of me. it’s not a big deal anyways. i’m just a baby.” his voice breaks. it breaks dream’s heart too. “you’re _my_ baby. you can cry, i won’t think any less of you. just because i’m your parent and i don’t have the strength to cry doesn’t mean that you should to imitate that.” he cups tommy’s cheek as the younger slowly lets his tears flow.

he lunges forward and hugs dream tightly, sobbing into his hoodie. he pulls away and looks at him. “i’ve never had a creeper blow up by me before. will cleaning it hurt more than the explosion?” he stutters as he asks. “it might, but you’re a strong kid. you can take it. you can squeeze my hand if it gets too much, okay?” dream places a hand on tommy’s shoulder. tommy nods before embracing him again. “that’s my boy. it’s going to be okay tommy.” he says, rubbing circles against his back. 

“i got the med kit!” tubbo shouts as he enters the room with purpled trailing not too far behind. “i got some cotton balls and rubbing alcohol like you asked.” he places the items down on the coffee table. dream nods as thanks. he wipes away the fresh cuts with a paper towel. then, he pours a little bit of rubbing alcohol onto a cotton ball. tommy grabs his available hand and holds it tight. dream gently dabs the cotton ball onto the cut, cleaning the wound. tommy winces as his hand starts to shake. 

“you’re doing good tommy. i’m almost done cleaning it. we’ll bandage it up and you’ll be fine.” dream reassures him again. tommy nods, tears slowly falling down the sides of his face. after cleaning it, dream grabs a bandage from the medical kit and wraps it around the open wounds. tommy lets go of his hand by then, but keeps it in close proximity just in case. when he’s done, he throws away the used cotton balls and closes the rubbing alcohol. he puts the rest of the cotton balls, the med kit, and the rubbing alcohol back where they belong and makes his way back to the living room. 

“see? you’re all better now.” he gently ruffles tommy’s hair. the blonde boy jumps into his arms, sobbing quietly. dream shooshes him and tells him that it’s fine. he gives him words of comfort and safety. tommy trusts these words and finds himself drifting off as dream rocks back and forth, cradling his son in his arms. 


	3. training with the blade

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> techno learns that tommy and tubbo are incredibly strong for their age

to say tommy admired the blade was an understatement. he wanted to be exactly like him.

“technoblade kinnie.” tubbo snickers, walking into the living room. tommy sighs tossing aside his iron sword. it makes a clattering noise as it hits the floor. “don’t come after me man. the blade is awesome!” tommy waves his arms as he speaks. tubbo snickers again, “and yet you’ve never spoken to him.” “well, from what mum tells us, he seems pretty badass.” the blonde teen puts his hands on his hips.

the two boys were left home alone under tubbo’s care. dream left the house to go catch up with the other members of the smp since tommy and tubbo were too tired to go with.

“just because he’s mum’s childhood friend doesn’t mean that he’ll like you.” the older boy teases. “why wouldn’t he like me? everyone likes me.” tommy narrows his eyes. “sure.” tubbo chuckles. the front door opens and dream enters the house. the boys drop their banter and run to hug him. 

“how was it while i was away?” he asks. “not too bad. tubbo is surprisingly good at supervising people.” tommy sighs. “would’ve turned out better if tommy wasn’t being stubborn the whole time, but other than that it was fine.” tubbo crosses his arms. dream snickers. “well tommy, i have a surprise waiting for you outside.” dream smirks. tommy’s eyebrows lift. he’s not sure if dream is just messing with him or not. he books it outside and immediately notices a tall man in a pig mask. he stops dead in his tracks.

”y-you’re technoblade.” tommy freezes. techno chuckles. “yep. dream’s told me a lot about you.” “i can’t believe it! tubbo! i’m talking to the blade!” he eyes his brother who’s standing calmly in the doorway. tubbo nods, his smile not fading. “if you want i can help you train. dream said you admired my swordsmanship.” he smirks. “oh fuck yeah i do! uh-let me ask my mum first.” tommy rushes back inside.

“mum!” he calls. dream comes out from his room, “what’s up?” “can i go train with techno?” he asks eagerly. “of course you can. i just have to be there to supervise.” dream chuckles. tommy doesn’t complain about that last bit. as long as he can train with techno it’s fine by him. he hugs dream tightly as a thank you before running back to the front yard. 

“he said that i can. he’s just going to come along with.” tommy can’t contain his smile no matter how hard he tries. “that’s fine. he’s been watchin’ me spar since i was 6.” the pig masked man shrugs. as if on cue, dream walks out of the house with tubbo by his side. techno smiles at the two and motions for them to come over to them. the four of them make their way to the arena that eret built not too long ago. 

“so, you’re a mom now huh?” techno chuckles. dream nods. they’re a little bit behind tommy and tubbo, but they don’t seem to mind. “i found them in the forest on my way home from george’s house.” he replies, crushing leaves as he walks. “you’re always at george’s house.” techno groans exaggeratedly. “and you’re always at the farm with philza and wil.” dream gently elbows him. “true, but at least i’m not a simp.” the older smirks. “you were in high school.” the younger points out. “that was years ago. i thought we agreed not to talk about that.” dream wheezes at his comment as they continue to walk. 

the coliseum-like arena came into view after fifteen minutes of walking. the four of them walked in, tommy and tubbo already excited to duel techno while dream put their stuff away. dream sat on the bleachers of the arena watching tommy, tubbo, and techno suit up. the armor was a little big on tommy but he didn’t seem to notice. tubbo gets the first hit. he swings his sword at techno, clashing it with his armor. it’s surprisingly close to his skin. tubbo’s accuracy has gotten better in the weeks that he’d been fighting mobs with dream, and tommy was no exception. 

though he was much more reckless and less cautious than tubbo, his brash actions caused harsh blows. one swing of tommy’s sword caught the blade off guard, causing him to back up a bit. tommy smirks at this, giving tubbo a look which the other clearly understood. 

both boys disappeared leaving only techno in the arena. dream silently chuckles to himself. he knows what they’re doing. he taught him his getaway method. techno stares at him. dream shrugs in response, acting aloof. the older rolls his eyes under the mask and continues to focus on the duel. 

techno can feel the two british boys’ presence behind him. _they really are his kids,_ he thinks. dream pulled this kind of thing a lot when they were younger, often catching him off guard. techno knew his ways and knew what to expect after ten years of sparring with him. as he expects, the boys lunge at him from behind. he dodges the blow and turns to face them. tommy and tubbo recover their stance just as quick. _impressive._

dream cheers from the bleachers. the last round was imminent and it was a tie. whether or not tommy and tubbo are able to defeat technoblade is really up to fate and skill. 

a final clashing of swords declares technoblade as the victor. dream claps and makes his way down to the arena. he helps up tommy and tubbo and checks them for any injuries. surprisingly, the only injury that tubbo had acquired was a slight gash on his cheek from techno’s sword. he grabs his bag and rummages through it, taking out a small paper towel and gently cleans the cut with it before putting a bandage over it. 

“we should go see wilbur and phil. i’m sure they’d love to see you guys for a bit.” techno suggests. dream gives his kids a comforting look, “if you guys are too tired, we don’t have to.” “hell yeah we can go! i haven’t seen wilbur in a while.” tommy replies, ecstatic. tubbo nods in agreement. “alright then. lead the way techno!” dream smiles. techno huffs but smiles afterwards and continues to lead the way to the farm. 


	4. dinner with the sleepy bois

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> after dueling, tommy, tubbo, and dream decide to hang out with techno’s family for a bit

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> part 2 to the last chapter

walking back to the farm with dream, tommy, and tubbo was a lot nicer than techno would like to admit. dream’s motherly nature mixed with tommy and tubbo’s conversions of adolescent banter was a nice change (although a bit draining) compared to quiet and stillness that he would normally have to go through. 

“how was dream like as a kid?” tommy asks. “he was a lot like you when he was younger.” techno smirks. he can tell dream is rolling his eyes under his mask. “really? what’s that supposed to mean?” “it means that he was reckless and impulsive. he gave off a calm and stoic exterior though, but i could see right through it.” “of course _you_ could, we’ve known each other for 16 years.” dream puts his hands in his hoodie pocket. 

“16 years?” tommy exclaims, stopping in his tracks. technoblade nods. “holy shit!” his eyes widen. the older chuckles at his reaction. “it’s been 16 years and he still acts the same.” dream mumbles to himself. tubbo picks up on his mom’s comment and laughs. 

techno twists the doorknob to the house letting dream and his two kids inside first. “we’re back!” he calls, closing the door behind them. wilbur is the first to greet them. he rushes downstairs and opens his arms wide enough to hug both tommy and tubbo. “hi!” he exclaims letting go of the embrace to look at the faces of his nephews. “hello wilba!” tommy greets, a wide smile spreads across his lips. “hello.” tubbo says as a sheepish smile climbs on his face. 

“i missed you guys. having technoblade around all the time gets boring, so it’s nice to finally see you guys again!” wilbur teases. techno rolls his eyes at his older brother. this causes dream to let out his iconic wheeze-like laughter. wilbur whips his head up to look at him. “and i see you brought dream along too.” he smiles. the older british man walks over to dream and shakes his hand. 

“philza will be happy to see you.” he comments. “i’m sure he’ll be happier to see tommy and tubbo than me.” the masked man jokes. “true. he misses them a lot. it’s been a while since he’s taken on a fatherly role anyways.” wilbur shrugs. “now what’s that supposed to mean?” another british voice joins in. philza steps in the living room as he closes the door that leads to the backyard. wilbur stops in his tracks while dream wheezes at the timing of the situation. techno lets out a quiet snicker as he leans against the wall. 

“nothing.” wilbur responds quickly. philza looks at him, skeptical. “mhm. if you say so.” he crosses his arms. dream holds back on wheezing anymore for the sake of his lungs. techno eyes tommy and tubbo who are sat on the couch having their own conversation and tuning out the adults around them. 

philza, wilbur, and tubbo are cooking dinner by popular demand. and by “popular demand” meaning that philza doesn’t trust techno and tommy being anywhere near a kitchen and needs dream to supervise them. 

“i’m surprised you can’t cook techno.” dream snickers. “i’m surprised you can smiley.” he playfully retorts. “in his defense, he’s a really good cook.” tommy comments, tired of sitting and listening to his mom and technoblade “argue” with one another. “is he really though?” techno gives him a sideways look. “yeah! despite how chaotic he is, he’s actually pretty good at cooking.” he shrugs. “never trust tommy and tubbo in the same kitchen for future reference.” dream adds, resting his head on his hand. techno snorts, “i think that’s a given. 

philza sets down glass plates on the table in front of everyone’s seats. dream lifts his mask up so only his mouth is visible. “i don’t know why you still wear that thing. i’m pretty sure everyone in the room has seen your face.” techno points out. “true, but it makes me more comfortable.” “not being able to see anything while eating?” techno inquires. dream pauses for a moment, “okay, maybe not that, but-” a few chuckles are let out from everyone in the room.

“come on dweam i wanna see your face.” wilbur teases. “you’re such an idiot.” dream snorts. “can you guys please stop hitting on my mum?” tommy groans. techno almost spits out the water in his mouth as dream refrains from hitting his fist on the table and wheezing. wilbur sits there wide eyed, but still covering his hand over his mouth to hold in a laugh. “tommy please,” tubbo starts. “they’re just joking.” “oh i’ll make sure they’re joking.” tommy stands up only for tubbo to put a hand on his shoulder to sit him back down. 

“damn dream, your kids act like this?” wilbur jokes. “sadly, yes.” dream sighs. “i heard that mum!” tommy shouts from the other side of the dinner table. there’s always a ton of yelling when they have dinner with dream and his kids. sometimes the food doesn’t even get touched and they have to save it for another day. philza smiles as wilbur and tommy bicker, with little inputs from technoblade, and tubbo trying to keep the peace. he wouldn’t have it any other way.

the sun sets and dream doesn’t want to risk any mobs coming after his kids. so, he stands outside the house with tommy and tubbo as they wave the residents goodbye.

“my feet hurt.” tommy groans. dream chuckles and lets tommy climb onto his back. “you’re such a baby.” tubbo jokes, poking his brother. “i’m not a baby!” tommy attempts to hit tubbo while on dream’s back. when he fails, tubbo laughs and continues to walk beside dream. tommy yawns and leans his head on dream, slowly closing his eyes. 

“is he heavy?” tubbo asks after a bit of walking. tommy had fallen asleep and was quietly snoring away. dream nods his head immediately and tubbo lets out a quiet chuckle. “figured as much, he’s oddly tall.” the brunette shrugs, kicking the rocks in his path. dream chuckles, “you guys are too much.” 


	5. hot chocolate with the boys

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ranboo and quackity come over and make hot chocolate

“they’re here!” tommy shouts from the living room couch. dream gets to the front door before tommy and opens the door. he chuckles seeing the excitement grow on tommy’s face. tubbo groggily wakes up from his nap on the couch and joins them. 

“ayeee tommy!” quackity shouts, making his presence known. “big q!” tommy reciprocates his energy. dream moves out of the way to let the two hug. “hello big q.” tubbo attempts to reach the same amount of energy as them but fails after a yawn escapes from his lips. quackity chuckles and goes to hug tubbo, “jesus christ chubbo you look tired as shit.” “i just woke up.” he blinks. a deeper source of laughter captures everyone’s attention. 

“hello ranboo.” tubbo waves. “heyo.” the enderman hybrid waves back. “ranboo! my favorite white boy!” tommy exclaims, catching the taller off guard. he responds with a burst of laughter. with everyone inside after walking from their respective residency to dream’s house, tubbo runs over to the closet to get blankets for everyone. tommy sits with ranboo and quackity by the fireplace, keeping them company. 

“if i don’t see a woman shaped present then i just might cry.” tommy pretends to pout. “that’s a little messed up tommy.” quackity chuckles. “why can’t you be normal for once?” ranboo sighs. tommy lets out a loud laugh as he covers his eyes with his hand. quackity covers his face as he leans over to his side and laughs up a storm. tubbo comes by and sneaky tosses a blanket over tommy. 

the teen immediately stiffens, “who the fuck was that?” “no one.” tubbo replies, hiding his snickering. “tubbo you son of a bitch! where the fuck are you?” tommy throws the blanket onto the ground and jumps to his feet, ready to tackle his older brother. he runs to the kitchen and almost bumps into dream. 

“slow down tommy!” dream holds him by his shoulders. “he’s in his room.” he whispers to tommy. dream gives him a smirk before he dashes towards the room on the far right that may or may not hold his brother. 

“are they always like this?” ranboo asks. “yep. they’re always hyperactive and constantly putting on a show.” dream chuckles. he pulls his mask further down to cover more of his face when he feels it slipping. “can confirm.” quackity says. he’s snuggled up by the fireplace under the blanket tommy threw on the floor minutes earlier. 

“are you even cold ranboo?” dream tilts his head. ranboo shrugs, “not really.” “endermen can’t feel pain i guess.” quackity jokes. tubbo bursts into the room and slams onto the couch. “holy shit! tubbo what happened?” dream shouts. the brunette puts a finger to his lips, telling dream to be quiet. the older hears tommy’s footsteps in the distance and he nods. 

“tommy i think tubbo ran outside!” quackity smirks. “in the pouring rain? are you shitting me!” tommy groans. he puts on his coat and walks into the living room. dream stops him, “woah woah tommy wait.” “what now?” tommy slumps down. “you are not going outside in the pouring rain. tubbo isn’t even out there.” he points to the door. tubbo holds in his giggling. tommy spots the cabinet that holds the packs of hot chocolate. he eyes dream 

“mum can we make some hot chocolate?” he asks. “i don’t see why not. do you guys want some too?” “yes please.” ranboo replies. “hey i want some too!” tubbo jumps up from the couch. “there’s the bitch!” tommy shouts, pointing at tubbo. “i knew that would get you!” tubbo sighs and flips down on the couch.

quackity nods, slumping deeper under the blanket. “watch quackity fall asleep.” ranboo comments. “shut up man. it’s cold as shit uphill dream, how the fuck do you live like this?” quackity shivers. “you get used to it overtime.” dream shrugs, pulling out the hot chocolate packs from the cupboard. he grabs five cups from the dishwasher and sets them on the counter before pouring milk in a pot to boil. 

“i haven’t had hot chocolate since i was a kid.” ranboo sits down on the couch next to tubbo.“that’s actually kinda sad dude.” “is it?” the enderman hybrid’s eyebrow raises quizzically. “goddamn how much childhood trauma do you have?” ranboo chuckles in response. tommy joins the group shortly after. 

“what’s going on boys?” tommy jumps over the couch and plops down next to ranboo on the cushion. “not much. just talking about ranboo’s childhood trauma.” “really?” “i do _not_ have trauma.” ranboo sighs. dream lets out a wheeze from the kitchen, pouring hot milk into the cups with cocoa powder. he adds a few extra marshmallows for them. 

“hot chocolate is done!” he calls. the four rush over to the kitchen stumbling between the furniture and racing one another to get there first. ranboo snatches his cup first and is careful not to spill it as he walks to the kitchen table. quackity is still up and begins to search dream’s pantry. 

“quackity what the hell are you doing?” he asks. “i’m adding a little _spice_.” quackity puts his hands to his hips. “the fuck does that mean?” tommy inquires, stirring the spoon in his cup. “i like my hot chocolate with candy canes. do you guys have any?” he moves some of the food items around in search of them. “they’re on the top shelf so that tommy and tubbo can’t get them.” dream replies, finally sitting down at the table.

quackity groans, “that’s too high up i can’t reach that!” “so you finally admit that you’re short.” ranboo laughs. “dream can you please get them for me?” “fine.” dream reaches for the candy cane box on the top shelf and sets it down on the counter. “so that’s where they were!” tubbo exclaims. dream nods. “thanks man.” quackity says as he puts two candy canes in his hot chocolate. 

after a while, they all finish their drinks and hang out in the living room. quackity continues to sit in his place on the floor wrapped up in a blanket, tommy and tubbo sit on the couch with dream in between them to stop any conflict, and ranboo sits on the other couch by quackity. they talk for a while about spending the holidays with family and friends, before dream cuts the conversation short, noticing ranboo’s odd behavior. he would fidget with his hands and would often stare into space as quackity and tommy talked amongst them. 

eventually, quackity decided it was time to head home. “i’m sad that i can’t keep that blanket. that shit was warm.” “well it’s for my sons so you obviously can’t have it.” dream chuckles, folding the blanket and putting it away in the storage closet. “now i have to walk back home and it’s so cold!” he groans. “you could always just stay here until the rain passes.” dream suggests. “nah. i don’t think i want to spend the night before christmas with tommy.” “fuck you!” “thanks for having me over though, really.” quackity laughs before waving goodbye and leaving the house. 

ranboo sighs and walks up to dream. “hey dream, uh, can i stay here for the night? i don’t really like the rain, it’s just enderman hybrid things, and i don’t want to walk home while it’s still out. i promise that i’ll be gone the next morning before you even notice i-” “ranboo it’s okay! you don’t have to explain why you need to stay the night, everyone has their own personal reasons and i understand your situation. i would never deny anyone of hospitality.” dream refrains from placing his hands on ranboo’s shoulders in case he’s uncomfortable with it. “i-thank you so much dream. really i appreciate it.” “no problem. you can sleep in my room, it’s cold in the living room and even though you can’t feel heat and whatnot i still want you to sleep easy tonight. i know the rain can disrupt your sleep. don’t feel bad about it either okay? it’s my decision to sleep out here and it’s not your fault.” ranboo stares at the older man wide eyed but he nods. he impulsively hugs him and thanks him again before running off to dream’s room. dream smiles hoping that maybe he can help ranboo with whatever he’s struggling with too. 


	6. romance am i right chat?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> tommy and tubbo try setting dream up with george

“dream it’s fine! i got it!” tubbo says, struggling to take the extra blankets away from his mother. “tubbo, i chose to sleep on the couch you don’t need to clean up after me.” dream sighs. he’s clearly winning the blanket tug of war against tubbo, but the younger refuses to acknowledge it. “come on dream, you’ve been working too hard. let me just put this away for you. i’m capable of doing things too y’know.” tubbo’s grip on the blanket is slowly starting to get loose. “the man has a point.” tommy shrugs, watching the two argue from the kitchen. dream sighs and turns back to tubbo. 

“fine, but if it won’t fit in the closet tell me, okay?” dream instructs. tubbo nods as the blanket is given to him. he rushes off to put it away. dream makes his way over to the kitchen and sits across from tommy at the table. “you know you don’t have to do _everything_ around the house. give yourself a break mum.” tommy takes a sip from his apple juice. “i know, but i just want you guys to have it easy. i don’t want to have you guys do stuff all the time to the point where you don’t have any time to take care of yourselves.” dream elaborates. “and? you need to take care of yourself too. that’s just hypocritical!” an idea pops into tommy’s head as those words fall from his mouth. 

“see? it wasn’t that hard to put the blanket away!” tubbo says as he plops down on the seat at the kitchen table. tommy eyes dream after tubbo’s statement. dream sighs and leans back in his chair a bit, “i guess not tubbo.” 

dream lets tommy and tubbo out of the house to walk around the smp before nightfall. 

“where are we going?” tubbo asks, following his younger brother as they walk past l’manburg. “to george’s house.” tommy smirks. “what?” tubbo stops abruptly in his step. tommy stops too and turns around to face him. “why would we go to george’s house?” he asks. “come on tubbo, you’ve seen how dream talks about him. he’s _clearly_ interested.” tommy says with a smirk. tubbo ponders for a bit before picking up on tommy’s plan. 

“what are you guys doing here?” george asks when he opens the door to see the two teens. “well, you see, dream’s in a bit of a predicament.” tommy smirks. george sighs and allows the two to come in. “simp.” tubbo whispers with a smile as he walks in. 

“so what’s happened with dream?” george sits down on the couch. the boys sit on each side. “he’s been overworking himself. he won’t take breaks. so, we need someone _important_ to give him a break.” tommy explains. george contemplates tommy’s exposition. “and you came to me for that?” george mutters to himself. he looks at them before sighing again, “fine. i’ll take him for a walk around the smp or something.” tommy and tubbo don’t try to hide their smiles on the way out. 

“george? what are you doing here?” dream asks, after he opens the front door. “i haven’t seen you in a while, and figured you were overworking yourself again, so i came over to help you relax for a bit.” george shrugs. 

“he’s a good liar.” tubbo whispers from a afar. “i know, i’m just as surprised as you are.” tommy whispers back, not wanting to blow their cover. 

“gods, is it really that noticeable?” dream says under his breath. george catches on to it though and nods. dream sighs. “i’m gonna go change, i’ll be right back.” dream slinks away inside the house again. 

dream comes back in an oversized green cardigan with a white shirt and black jeans. george snickers. “what?” the younger asks, looking down at him. “why are you wearing your combat boots? you’re already taller than me.” george pokes fun at him with a warm smile. “well excuse me for having a sense of style gogy.” dream wheezes. he closes the door behind him and locks it. george takes his hand and they make their way to the rest of the smp. 

“if he wasn’t our mum, i would’ve thought they were dating.” tommy carefully stands up from behind the bush. tubbo stands up not too long after. “they could’ve had me fooled either way.” the older dusts himself off. “let’s go follow them.” tommy chases after them quietly from the sidelines with tubbo not far behind. 

“i think tubbo would like that one.” george points to a bee plush sitting on niki’s stand. dream glances over to where the british male is pointing. he smiles when he notices the plushie. “i’ll get it for him.” he walks up to niki’s stand, not bothering to let go of george’s hand. 

“hello dream! i’m surprised to see you down here.” she waves. “this thing dragged me out here.” dream points to george who’s standing awkwardly beside him. she giggles at the sight. “i just wanted him to take a break alright? he’s been overworking himself from what i’ve heard.” george elbows him gently.

“ow! you hurt me george.” dream leans his head on the shorter. “yeah, yeah, but we’re here to get tubbo the bee plushie, not for me to baby you.” george sighs. niki holds back another laugh as she hands them the bee plush resting by the register. “here you go!” she smiles. george hands her the amount of gold the bee was worth and thanks her before dragging dream away from the stand. 

dream looks down at george who’s admiring the scenery around them. he can’t help but do the same. the light snow and the lanterns over the water are definitely a sight to see. it looks like someone took george’s color palette and painted a landscape with it. dream likes it. 

“you good dream?” george pokes the younger’s face with the bee plush. dream whips his head to look at him. his reaction causes george to burst out laughing. dream can’t help but laugh too with how contagious it is. 

they stay at the docks for a while. george doesn’t mind. whatever it takes to get dream to rest a little bit longer.

“seriously? tommy burnt his mouth on the hot chocolate?” george tilts his head to the side. a smile rests on his face. dream gets more relaxed and enthusiastic as he talks about his two kids. “that’s what i said.” dream laughs. “you think he’d be more rational than _that_.” “you’ve clearly never met tommy then.” he snorts. 

george likes the way dream closes his eyes and leans back when he laughs. sure, it takes away the view of dream’s deep emerald eyes, but it makes up for the happiness that dream feels, and the happiness he feels when he sees the corners of dream’s mouth quirk up in a smile. 

“oh shit!” dream exclaims suddenly. george immediately sits up, “what happened?” “uh, can we go to techno’s house? i just remembered that wilbur has a gift for tommy.” george nods. he helps dream stand up before they walk to the sleepy bois’ farm.

dream knocks on the door of the house. techno opens it a few seconds after. he looks at them, towering over the two visitors. 

“i’m assuming you’re here to get wilbur’s gift for tommy?” the pink haired man asks. dream nods. techno opens the door wide enough for both men to enter. techno closes the door and goes upstairs, presumably to grab wilbur. 

the taller brunette makes his way down the stairs, with a box in his hand. when he’s on the same level as the rest, he hands dream the box. it’s wrapped in red wrapping paper and is addressed to “big man tommyinnit”. dream cracks a smile at the note.

dream is careful not to stay at their residence for too long, so as to not make george uncomfortable. they leave the house with the gift in dream’s hands.

tommy sees them heading away from the farm and towards the house. “come on tubbo! we have to get there before them!” he grabs his brother’s wrist as they run through the forest back to their house. tubbo rummages through his pockets once they get to the front door and finds the house key. tommy sighs with relief as they swing the door open before shutting and locking it. they both throw themselves on the couch after a long day of attempting to keep up with george and dream.

george walks dream back home. he caught a glimpse of the american yawning and insisted that he brought him home. 

“thank you for taking me out to have fun for a bit. i really did need this after all.” dream stands on his porch, fingers still interlocked with george’s. “it’s not a big deal, really. if you feel stressed again just tell me and we’ll hang out like this.” he lets go of dream’s hand. _it feels colder_ dream notes. he gives him a quick kiss on the cheek before waving goodbye. george stands there in shock. dream giggles as he closes the door. george leaves the porch, face turning red.

“damn mum what were you doing the whole time? we’ve been here for hours.” tubbo asks, pretending not to be aware of their “date”. “i just went to hang out with george. that’s all.” dream’s dazed expression still hasn’t worn off. “it looks like it went pretty well then.” tommy smirks when he notices how red dream’s face is. “yeah, you could say that.” dream smiles, reminiscing. 

“hey, what’s that?” tubbo points to the two boxes in dream’s hands. he looks down and his eyes widen in remembrance. “oh right! here.” he hands the smaller box to tubbo and the larger, by not much, to tommy. “open them. george got that for you, tubbo and wilbur made those for you, tommy.” he comments.

tubbo peels the green wrapping which reveals a white box that encompasses a bee plush. tubbo gasps and pulls the thing out of the box, giving it a tight hug for good measure. tommy carefully rips open the red wrapping paper, pondering what wilbur could’ve possibly made him in the process. an almost flat box is opened and reveals two cds. a green one titled “cat” and a purple one titled “mellohi”. tommy’s jaw drops and demands to find out where the jukebox is. dream finds it somewhere in his room and brings it out to the living room. 

tommy plops in the cat disc and sits down next to tubbo by the fireplace. the instrumental music plays throughout the house as dream lays down on the couch, watching his two kids bask in the enjoyment of their new things. 


	7. achievement get: a new home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a new son joins the fray

another rainy day. dream sighs to himself as he stares out the window. water droplets fall and glide across the clear glass. the rain makes a paddling noise as it falls to the rooftop and drips down the house. the sound keeps tommy and tubbo asleep in their rooms. the sound keeps dream awake and alert, waiting for someone to show up. a quiet knock on the door is heard. 

dream carefully gets up from couch and walks over to the door. he opens the door and sees ranboo standing there, as expected. dream gives the younger a warm smile and lets him in.

“thanks again dream. i’m sorry for constantly coming over whenever it rains. i’m sure you have other stuff to do.” ranboo sits down on the couch. his hair might be the only thing that’s wet, but dream gives him a change of clothes anyways. “ranboo it’s fine. you don’t need to apologize each time you’re here, i said you can come over at any time.” ranboo takes the folded clothes from dream. ranboo leaves to go change into the clothes dream gave him. 

when he goes back to the living room, he takes a seat on the couch next to dream.

“can i, uh, can i lean my head on your shoulder?” ranboo tugs on the ends of the oversized sweater sleeves. “sure. do you want a blanket too?” dream offers. ranboo nods, “yes please.” dream stands up and makes his way to the closet. he grabs the blanket on the top shelf and closes the closet door before sitting back down on the couch. he drapes the blanket over ranboo and himself. ranboo pulls the blanket over his shoulders as he rests his head on dream’s left shoulder. 

the fireplace ahead of them crackles. ranboo allows himself to get lost in the sounds of the fire and manages to block out the pattering of the rain. he hums as he warms up to dream.

”is the silence too awkward for you? i’m sorry if it is, i was never really good at making small talk.” ranboo rambles. dream shooshes him, “it’s okay. the silence is fine unless it’s uncomfortable for you. if you feel like you need to talk, then talk. i’ll be here to listen.” “can i talk about my past, if it’s alright? i just need to ramble about something to distract myself from the sound of rain.” he asks. “of course. i’ll listen to whatever you want to talk about.” dream pulls the blanket over ranboo’s shoulders once he notices it slowly falling off. 

“thank you. so i lived with my mom for a while right? she never talked about my dad, at all. since she didn’t mention him, i never asked. one day she just up and left. she told me to go out in our garden and pick her some fruits, so i did. i came back inside because it started raining and i couldn’t find her anywhere. i was too scared to go out and search for her in the rain, so i stayed inside for a bit.” ranboo fights the tears that linger in his eyes. he attempts not to sniffle.

dream stays quiet. he simply nods when ranboo talks, showing him that he’s actively listening. 

“after the it stopped raining i-i ran. i ran so far from the house. i left everything behind. i didn’t know where i was going but i ran as far from that place as i could.” ranboo feels his mind wander back to that point in time again. he remembers the fear he once felt. the amount of pain in his lungs he gained after running for miles without stopping.

“i didn’t know how to teleport at the time because no one taught me so i ran the whole way.” ranboo can't stop his mind from wandering. it takes over him and he starts to cry. tears fall from the younger’s eyes as they land onto dream’s hoodie.

dream quickly turns to face ranboo and pulls him in a quick hug. “shhh, it’s okay ranboo. it’s all in the past. no one is going to abandon you again. you’re safe here, okay? you won’t have to run away from your house like you did back then.” dream gently rubs circles on his back. ranboo hugs dream tightly and quietly sobs in his chest. 

the living room grows quiet. the sound of raining and ranboo’s cries have stopped. an idea comes to dream when he looks down at the enderman hybrid in his arms. 

“ranboo, how would you feel about staying here? not for the night, but permanently.” dream asks. the hybrid lifts his head up, “are you asking me to live with you? i-are you asking to adopt me?” “yes to both questions.” the blonde smiles. ranboo’s eyes widen. “y-you’re not joking with me right? you’d actually adopt me and i would get to live here?” ranboo stares at him in bewilderment. dream nods. vibrant green and red eyes gaze into emerald ones for just a moment. dream’s warm smile tells ranboo everything he needs. 

“oh my god! i-i’m actually getting adopted. holy cow! thank you so much dream. this means the world to me.” ranboo wraps his arms around the blonde man. he thinks he might cry again. “you’re welcome ranboo. i’ll register you under my residence tomorrow okay?” ranboo nods eagerly. “i don’t even care that i’m stuck with tommy and tubbo as my siblings, i’m just so glad that i actually have a home now. i seriously cannot thank you enough.” dream chuckles. 

speaking of the devil, two groggy british teenagers walk out from their respective rooms. 

“what’s happened here?” tommy yawns. “i’ll explain when you two aren’t tired.” dream laughs. the older invites the boys to sit down beside them. tubbo sits on the right side of dream and rests his head on his shoulder while tommy lays down over tubbo with his head on dream’s lap. the three teens eventually drift off and fall asleep. dream smiles, closing his eyes and falling asleep as well. 


	8. be who you are

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> tubbo doesn’t like opening up to anyone, but maybe, just this once, he’ll allow it

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ⚠️this chapter includes a shit ton of hurt/comfort and tubbo does have a panic attack so keep that in mind before you read ⚠️

tubbo doesn’t know how he ended up here, curled up in his bed, blankets on the ground so as to not distract him. he’s not shaking, at least not yet. his silent cries are drowned out by the ringing in his ears. tears blur his vision as he tries to keep his sobbing silent. no one needs to hear this. 

“tubbo?” a voice calls out to him. the brunette in green freezes. he doesn’t have the strength to answer. a gentle knock on the door echoes in tubbo’s ears. it clashes with the ringing. it hurts. he hates being hyperaware of his surroundings. it makes it harder for him to breathe.

“you’re scaring me kid. are you okay?” he’s pretty sure that he responded, but he can’t be sure. he can’t hear himself, but he felt his mouth move. he doubts that he said anything coherent though. his mind is so scrambled around that he can’t think properly. 

he hears the door unlock. dream must’ve used the spare key. the sound heightens tubbo’s senses. he starts hyperventilating.

dream looks down at the floor of tubbo’s room and freezes in place. his blankets are thrown to the ground, the room is completely dark, and tubbo is curled up on his bed. the masked man rushes over to the bed and gently sits down on it. he’s careful with his movements. 

“can you hear me right now tubbo?” he asks, not wanting to make contact with the boy just in case. tubbo nods. his throat feels dry from forcing himself to keep breathing.

”give me five things you can see.” 

tubbo’s eyes wander around the room. 

“blankets, c-curtains, bee, you, a-and the closet.” he rasps out. 

“good, good. can you give me four things you can feel?” 

“th-the bed, my bee plush, tears, and my shirt.” his breathing is starting to stabilize. dream breathes a sigh of relief. 

“that’s great. can give me three things you can hear now?”

”your voice, ringing, and the wind.” tubbo’s mind starts to clear up a little bit. 

“you’re doing good. can you smell anything?”

“n-no.” tubbo’s body slowly releases the tension that tied his posture together. 

“that’s fine. can you taste anything either?” 

tubbo nods.

“sweetness.” his vision fades in and out of focus. his breathing slows down as his hands release the tight grip he once had on his shirt. dream gently puts a hand on tubbo’s back. the boy attempts not to flinch at the sudden contact, unintentionally telling dream that he’s comfortable with physical contact now. he slowly rubs circles on tubbo’s back, attempting to calm down the green clad boy and helping him breathe normally

“can you breathe okay?”

“a little bit.”

dream continues to rub circles on the boy’s back as he thinks of something else that might help.

“can you repeat after me? if it’s too hard to repeat then just listen okay?”

”okay.”

“it’s okay. it’ll be over in a little bit. you’re trying your best to breathe. it’s going to be okay.” 

“it’s going to be okay. i’ll be okay. it’ll be over.”

“you’ll be okay. this will stop soon. you’ll be able to breathe properly.” 

“it’ll stop. i’ll be able to breathe. breathe.” tubbo stammers. his breathing seems to be getting back to normal. 

he wraps his arms around the man in green, silently crying and whispering a “thank you.” dream cradles the teenager in his arms. 

“shhh, it’s okay tubbo. i got you now. if it gets hard to breathe again, tell me okay? i’m not going anywhere.” dream reassures him. the boy in dream’s arms nods, curled up against him. “do you mind telling me what started it?” he asks. 

tubbo’s mind is still scattered. he needs help to settle it down. 

_don’t tell him. that just makes you weaker. you have to stay strong for tommy and, now, ranboo. you’re older than tommy, you can’t be having a panic attack or opening up right now!_

the voice in his head screams this. it echoes and bounces off the walls of his head, but tubbo knows what’s right for him and he opens his mouth to speak.

“i-i was just thinking about my parents. they didn’t like me very much, but i tried to get them to.” tubbo curls up closer to dream’s chest. “i wasn’t allowed to do a lot. when tommy was born, tommy wasn’t allowed to do much either. but the difference between me and tommy is that tommy’s a fighter.” he explains.

“oh i _know_ tommy’s a fighter.” dream jokes, in hopes of lifting the heavy tension in the air. he smiles when tubbo lets out a breathy laugh before continuing.

“he fought off our parents. he fought for the decisions and the things we wanted to do. no matter how much they yelled at us, i encouraged him to keep fighting because no one should break you down for speaking up for yourself right?” he looks up at the green eyed man. dream nods.

“well his defensive nature is what got us kicked out in the end. i just wish that i stopped him, but then we would’ve been even more powerless and we wouldn’t have met you. gods knows what we would do if we’d stayed there and you didn’t take us into hospitality.” tubbo goes on. 

“it’s okay tubbo. you did what you could. you wanted to fight for your ability to do things with the help of tommy. it doesn’t matter that you got kicked out, what matters is that you tried. speaking from experience, if they can’t see that you’re trying to explain your situation to them, then so be it. you’re a strong kid tubbo, i’m proud of you.” dream gently rocks the boy. 

tubbo feels his eyelids get heavier. dream seems to notice too as picks up a blanket from the floor and wraps it around them. tubbo is grateful to have a parent like dream and closes his eyes with the thought in mind. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you guys thought tubbo was safe from self projection? not a chance


	9. dream?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> even dream has secrets too

screaming. intense screaming. it’s ear piercing. it’s filled with pain and agony. it rebounds throughout the house and makes its way through ranboo’s bedroom walls. it’s enough to make ranboo cover his ears. not again. _not another parent._

_dream had been acting strange this past week. he was a lot more on edge and less composed than usual. none of his kids knew why or what was happening, but oh boy were they about to find out._

he can see tommy cowered in the corner of his room. tubbo was still out there. he was still in his own room. ranboo needed to get them both in here. save them from dream. hide. 

“tommy, no matter what happens, stay in here. okay? don’t even think about leaving.” he places his hands on tommy’s shoulders. the young blonde boy nods immediately. ranboo carefully opens the door and shuts it before booking it down the hall to tubbo’s room. 

he makes sure that he isn’t seen by dream, or whatever he was now, as he ran to his brother’s room. he pounds on the door just quiet enough for “dream” not to hear.

“tubbo. tubbo open the door now.” he whisper shouts in hopes the other will hear. the brunette opens it immediately, his eyes widen in fear. the hybrid quickly grabs his wrist and rushes back to his own room. 

the door is opened and locked just as quick. 

“d-did he see you guys?” tommy stutters out. ranboo shakes his head. 

“we need to get out of here.” tubbo says. sure, it’s the obvious, but he needs to say what’s all on their minds. 

“where do we even go?” ranboo asks. he rubs his temples. 

“we could go tell wilbur. i’m sure that techno and wilbur will know how to get it to stop.” tommy suggests. 

the two older teenagers are desperate. they’ll take any form of hope to get dream back to his original state. tubbo nods in agreement with tommy. 

“ranboo? are you on board?” the brunette asks. 

“well, we don’t have a choice do we? we need to help him, and if technoblade and wilbur can help us get him back then we might as well tell them.” ranboo replies, hands intertwined and shaking as they rest on his lap. 

“alright then.” tommy stands up. “let’s do this shit.” he sighs. 

tubbo wraps his left arm around ranboo’s right arm, whist tommy wraps his right arm around ranboo’s left arm. ranboo sighs. he closes his eyes and imagines a farm. he imagines techno and wilbur sitting in the living room with philza off to the side. his body fills with small tingles as he feels the carpet in the room shift to a wooden floor. 

“what the fuck?” a monotone voice is heard. ranboo opens his eyes again. the three teens are in the middle of the sleepy bois’ living room.

wilbur blinks twice and puts on his glasses, examining the trio. a worried expression makes its way onto philza’s face as he imagines the worst case scenario for why they showed up. 

“explain.” wilbur’s says with a worried undertone. 

“something’s wrong with dream. he started shrieking today and we don’t know why.” ranboo elaborates. 

“he’s been acting strange all week.” tommy adds. 

techno’s eyes widen immediately. wilbur shifts uncomfortably in his chair. 

“do you know something we don’t?” tubbo asks. 

“obviously. why he didn’t tell you three is a whole different can of worms, but it’s nothing we can’t explain.” philza sighs. 

“oh boy.” ranboo sighs. the three boys take a seat on the couch and brace themselves for the sacred information dream had hidden from them. 

“dream is...well he’s something else for sure.” philza winces as he explains. “he’s like, uh-” 

“a fallen angel almost.” techno finishes.

“sort of, yeah.” phil sighs and crosses his arms. 

tommy’s mouth is hung open. ranboo freezes in place. tubbo’s brows are furrowed. 

“explain please.” tubbo huffs. 

“what the fuck do you mean _fallen angel_?” tommy stands up. his stance is frail but defensive. ranboo tugs his sleeve, telling him to sit back down. the younger sighs but obliges and sits back down on the right side of the couch. 

“dream is sort of a god. gods are prone to finding their own territory and setting off on their own. they don’t really like the idea of being tied down against their will.” techno explains. 

“is that why his first decision was to run away from home?” tubbo murmurs. 

“probably,” techno replies. “anyways, someone from the heavens had punished him which caused him to gain a demonic form. he’s been keeping it at bay for a while, so i’m not sure why it’s taking over now.” he looks down at the wooden floor. his mind flips through different possible reasons.

“has he been under any pressure lately?” wilbur interjects when he notices technoblade spacing out.

“not that i know of.” tubbo taps his fingers on the arm rest. tommy shakes his head. 

“if it’s any consolation, i have bad memory but i still can’t think about what could’ve caused this.” ranboo comments in hopes that his self deprecating joke lightens the mood a little. 

he notices wilbur attempt to suppress a laugh, and that’s enough for him. 

“there’s only one person who can really help us with this.” phil sighs. techno seems to know who philza’s talking about, and grimaces. 

“who would that be?” 

“fundy.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so...how are you guys liking the new story arc so far????


	10. getting the fox

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> with fundy’s knowledge of exorcism, they kind of need him along for the ride.

“fundy?”

philza nods. 

“i didn’t know that he had any sort of knowledge about this.” tommy mutters to himself in disbelief. 

“he’s the only one who can even grasp the ideas of demon hunting.” phil explains. 

“my son is brave after all.” wilbur chuckles. 

“your son?” ranboo questions. 

“well, he’s not my actual son, but he might as well be.” the man in a trench coat shrugs. 

“we’re wasting time, we need to tell him before it gets worse.” tubbo gets up from the couch. 

“before we get to that, do sapnap and george know about _any_ of this?” tommy asks. 

“to my knowledge, they should.” techno responds, also standing up. 

the tall pink haired man guides them to an underground bunker. the teens’ eyes widen at the sheer amount of chests and armor that are stored in the bunker. 

“woah! since when did you guys have this?” tommy’s eyes dart around the room. 

“i’ve been collecting supplies since pogtopia’s war.” techno replies, gathering materials. 

ranboo is hesitant to take the supplies for himself. his hand grazes upon the netherite armor in front of him. he looks behind him and sees philza who gives him a reassuring smile. 

“go on then. take whatever you’d like mate.” philza ushers ranboo towards the enchanted armor. 

ranboo smiles before taking the armor off the stand and putting it on. the enderman hybrid takes a couple of potions and food supplies for himself as well. 

tommy immediately goes for the weapons. the blonde snatches a netherite sword from one of the many chests. he gives it a few test swings before putting it in his inventory. 

tubbo takes a few precious gems from the chests. maybe, after this, he can buy dream a couple of things to help cope. hell, maybe he could buy stuff for ranboo and tommy too if there’s enough left. 

“why’d you take the currency of all things?” wilbur asks when they exit the bunker. 

“i was hoping to buy something for everyone as a thank you, y’know?” tubbo replies. wilbur nods. 

“that’s very generous tubbo.” the older smiles. 

“really? i thought it was just common sense.” the green clad boy shrugs. the guitarist beside him chuckles.

they’re back in the living room. ranboo counts his supplies while tommy impatiently waits for everyone else to get settled. eventually, supplies are counted, everyone is geared up, and there’s enough food to last everyone. tommy and wilbur lead the group. ranboo had offered to teleport everyone, but phil decided against it, saying that it would take up too much of his energy. 

just as the sun starts to set, they reach the fox hybrid’s cottage. wilbur strides ahead of them and knocks on the door. a ginger haired boy opens it. 

“fundy!” wilbur shouts, wrapping the shorter in his arms. 

“hey wil.” the hybrid smiles. he removes himself from the embrace once he notices the group behind wilbur. “what’s everyone doing here?” he tilts his head to the side.

“we kinda need your help.” philza sighs. 

“with what?”

”it’s dream.” tubbo replies. fundy’s eyes widen. he ushers the group inside, shutting the door behind them. 

“is the dreamon back?” he inquires. wilbur nods. he gasps and covers his mouth. “oh god.” 

“we need your help to exorcize him.” tommy explains. 

“shit.” the ginger huffs. “let me get my things. where is he now?” he rummages through one of his chests. 

“he should still be at home. if he’s not then we’re definitely screwed.” ranboo looks down at the his sleeves, which he’s fiddling with. 

fundy puts his set of netherite armor in his inventory. 

“alright, let’s go.” he sighs. 

the group of six walk through l'manberg. eventually, night falls. phil decides it’s best to settle down for the night before going after him. despite how much techno argues against it, they set up camp for the night. 

“we’re wasting time. he could be completely fine right now.” the pink haired man argues. 

“the children are tired, techno. can you imagine what they must’ve gone through today? _especially_ with their amount of knowledge about this?” phil counters. techno goes quiet. “i know you’re worried, but we have the whole day tomorrow. please get some sleep too. we don’t need you sleep deprived tomorrow.” he comforts the taller. 

techno sighs nods. philza smiles before turning his attention to the three teens.

“alright boys! who’s ready to learn about exorcism?” fundy shouts, earning a fit of laughter from wilbur and the group of boys. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the short chapter. i’m delaying time before the exorcism


	11. hunters in training

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> tommy wants to fight the dreamon. 
> 
> ranboo and tubbo also want to fight the dreamon, but by having an exorcism instead.

“you’re really going to teach us how to exorcise a demon?” ranboo asks, tilting his head to the side. fundy nods. 

“you guys might want to pay attention. in case this ever happens again y’know?” the fox hybrid replies. 

“why can’t we just fight it? wouldn’t it be easier than remembering a phrase?” tommy groans. 

"fighting is way more difficult than just an exorcism. you don't want to risk killing him either. at least with an exorcism, the worst he'll go through is a coma and minor memory loss." funny explains.

"i'm all for dreamon hunting." tubbo pipes up.

"me too!" ranboo follows afterwards.

"well, let me explain the basics then." the ginger smiles. “now, there are three different types of demons. the first kind are the ones that are naturally born as demons. the second are the ones that use humans as a vessel. the last kind, the kind dream is, are the ones that come after punished gods.” 

“how does that work?” tubbo asks. 

“it’s a process really. once someone loses their ability to be called a god, the demon inside them starts to take over. it just depends on how much the punished god wants to let it take over.” fundy shrugs. 

“that’s-well that’s a bit confusing, but i think i understand.” tubbo scratches his nails. 

“you guys ready?” 

“yeah!”

fundy opens his inventory and grabs a few potions. 

“when it comes to potions, you can use any of them. however, there is one exception to this because, obviously, there always is.” fundy places the various potions on the pullout table. 

“which one would that be?” ranboo inquires. 

“invisibility potions. they don’t help very much when it comes to exorcisms. they can turn all of your teammates against each other or make your team lose the dreamon. it’s a lose lose either way.” he elaborates. 

“so no invisible potions, and don’t be stupid. got it.” tommy says causing the crowd of boys to laugh. 

“you also have to remember a phrase, as is common with exorcisms. now, there’s a different phrase for every demon, so you _have_ to listen carefully.” fundy warns. the group goes silent, waiting for fundy to give the command. the fox hybrid clears his throat. “i am one, a soul, a higher power. i will be fixed. i wish for this no more!” 

tommy slumps down and sighs. 

“do we have to do the shouting bit? it seems a bit embarrassing doesn’t it?” he asks. 

“tommy, you’re naturally loud. i don’t think it’ll be as embarrassing as you think it is.” fundy rolls his eyes at the younger. 

“okay, okay, fine.” he puts his hands up.

“now, demons do have one common weakness.” fundy reaches into his inventory once more. he pulls out a silver looking block. “iron,” he says, simply. “though some demons are really picky about the kind whether it be ore, ingots, or weaponry-”

“doors.” tubbo cuts him off. “dream hates iron doors.” fundy’s eyes widen. 

“oh. uh-elaborate, please?” 

“he told me once that he hated iron doors since they make him feel smaller, like he’s trapped. it would make sense since it matches up with what techno told us about gods hating the idea of being tied down.” tubbo explains, twiddling with his thumbs. the ginger across from him nods. 

“alright, well, the more you know i guess.” he mumbles. 

“can’t we just go at him with iron weapons then?” tommy groans. 

“tommy, violence isn’t going to solve it. besides, dream isn’t the one in control. the dreamon won’t hesitate to get back at you until you’re half a heart away from death.” fundy looks at the blonde, a piercing stare. brown eyes turn into daggers and stab at tommy.

“right, i guess not.” the teenager clears his throat. 

“i think it’s time for you all to go to bed, we have a big day ahead of us tomorrow.” phil says as he snaps his fingers.

the group of boys, and wilbur, groan before getting up from the log they were seated at. phil chuckles and leads the teens to their tent. wilbur stays behind and looks at fundy. 

“you okay man? you seem nervous about this.” the brunette inputs. fundy looks back at him and waves it off. 

“yeah, yeah, i’m fine wil. don’t worry about it. i just-i haven’t done this in a long time. i don’t know if it’ll go well.” he looks back at the campsite as tubbo closes the tent they’re in. 

“are you sure? you seem, gods how do i put it?” wilbur mumbles. he snaps his fingers once when the word comes to him. “off, you seem off.” fundy shakes his head. 

“i appreciate your concern wil, but i’m fine. just nervous, alright?” 

“yeah that’s fair. come on, let’s get you to bed.” wilbur walks behind fundy as they make their way to the campsite. 

the guitarist notices techno sitting by the fire place, staring at the flickering flames. he says nothing and continues to guide fundy to their tent. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the long wait. i haven’t really been motivated to write anything and have been forcing myself to write for a while. i finally got somewhere though, so that’s good :D


End file.
